Zeke Correll Back To Anchor Irish Offensive Line
Things have changed pretty quickly for Zeke Correll in the last year. Notre Dame’s center went from relatively inexperienced to a reliable grizzled veteran in the course of just one season. Now entering his fifth year of eligibility, Correll is back for his last go around on the Fighting Irish line in 2023.
“I’m the old guy now,” Correll said during the spring. “I was a senior last year. Now I’m a grad. It went by fast. But I know there’s not too many days that you get an opportunity to take advantage of, so now I just have that extra sense of urgency knowing I have to lead the guys and make sure we’re all working together.”
Correll went from playing in a total of 17 games, including eight starts, as a backup center in his first three seasons to starting all 13 games for the Irish in the middle of a Joe Moore Award nominated line last season. The Irish line started slowly last season, but the early lumps Correll and his line mates made has turned into valuable experience.
“I definitely have a far better understanding of the game of football,” Correll said of what those 13 starts last year mean for him. “My football IQ has gotten a lot better, and that’s come with studying the game, understanding the game, knowing where the ball is being run, understanding protections, seeing blitzes. Stuff like that will really help our offense and help this offensive line execute when we’re under pressure, especially because our defense likes to blitz every play. Being with these guys and seeing that from our defense is going to help prepare us for the season.”
Correll’s first opportunity to see increased playing time came last spring when Jarrett Patterson was out due to injury. Patterson had started 34 games at center from 2019-2021, but Correll’s spring play caught then offensive line coach Harry Hiestand’s eye and opened the door for him to play center while Patterson moved over to left guard. It’s a move that Correll didn’t take for granted.
“I was given an opportunity,” Correll explained. “My mindset was I have to take it. When Jarrett came back and moved to guard, there was no pausing moment in his eyes. He picked it up like that, didn’t complain with (anything). The whole unit became close. The more we played together, the better we got – as you saw as the season went on. That’s just a testament to what Notre Dame offensive line is about. It’s about five guys playing together, it’s about understanding what to do and doing it every time, relentlessly. That’s Notre Dame football. It was awesome to be a part of. It was really fun.”
With Patterson and right guard Josh Lugg both gone, Correll has the most starts of any lineman on the Fighting Irish roster. The departure of the two veterans means the Irish were working in two new guards this spring with Billy Schrauth (left) and Andrew Kristofic (right) emerging as the two top candidates.
Kristofic has played in all possible 26 games over the past two seasons, with career eight starts to his credit, while Schrauth saw no action in his redshirt freshman season.
“They’re good ballplayers,” Correll said of the duo. “All the guys have seen improvement this spring, from the start until now. We just keep working on mastering our technique. The most important thing is just making sure we’re all working together, making sure we see things the same way.
“Our main focus right now is making sure all five guys are working together,” Correll continued. “We have two new guards in there. We had Josh Lugg (and) Jarrett Patterson last year, and last year took us a while to piece it together and now we have two new guys in there. Right now, we’re just focused on everyone making sure they have their technique down and all five guys seeing (with) one set of eyes, working together every single play.”
The offensive line also has a new position coach this season. Joe Rudolph is the third line coach in as many seasons after following Hiestand, who came out of retirement to replace Jeff Quinn last year, only to retire again after offensive coordinator Tommy Rees left for Alabama in February.
Of course, every coach is going to have different techniques that they coach, things they like more than others,” Correll said when asked about the difference between Hiestand and Rudolph. “Coach Hiestand definitely helped me prepare and understand the game of football and what I have to do to take advantage (of) every play and just dominate. Coach Rudolph has helped me keep improving my game: He’s smart. He’s helped me with my pass sets, getting out of my stance, understanding pressure, how formation affects linebackers, everything cerebral in the game as well as technique. He’s been a great help to me.
“Some of our combo blocks are a little different,” Correll continued. “The footwork is slightly different. I think that’s the main difference. Other than that, we just have to keep making sure we’re on the same page, working together, making sure our double teams are tight. Obviously, assignment, everyone has to know what they’re doing at all times and know what the guy next to them is doing. A big emphasis has just been do your job. Don’t try to do anyone else’s job. Know and know that you know. Understand what you’re doing and just do your job. Go out there and execute.”
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